Civil Georgia
December 11, 2014
MPs Endorse Mandate Extension for Georgian Troops in Central African Republic
Tbilisi: The Parliament approved with 85 votes to 1 president’s proposal to extend mandate of Georgian troops’ participation in the EU mission in the Central African Republic till April, 2015.
About 140 Georgian soldiers joined the EU military mission in the Central African Republic (EUFOR RCA) in June, 2014.
The number of Georgian soldiers in the mission will be halved to two companies starting from January. Soldiers from the 23rd battalion of the 2nd infantry brigade of Georgian armed forces will serve in the mission till April; they will replace soldiers from the Batumi light infantry battalion, who are in the Central African Republic since June.
Secretary of the National Security Council, Irine Imerlishvili, told lawmakers at a parliamentary session on December 11, that the mission was originally to be completed by the end of this year, “but the European Union requested us to prolong the presence of our troops there.”
Georgia is the second largest contributor of troops to the mission after France, she added.
This is the first time when Georgia got involved in the EU military mission in frames of common security and defense policy after signing the framework agreement between Georgia and the EU in November, 2013 on Tbilisi’s participation in EU crisis management operations.
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